[Poohbah]

It appears to contain IC circuitry -- and IC circuitry if not properly shielded is susceptible to RF.

Yeah. The steel in your car's frame is more than enough shielding.

[dark_lord]

Maybe not. I can pick up radio waves on a personal radio in the car. I can shove that under the seat and still pick up radio. A strong enough RF pulse will get into the engine compartment via the dashboard. The question isn't really whether or not electromagnetic waves can get into the engine compartment, they can. The question really is -- can you engineer a properly formated EMP that will trigger the circuit for an airbag? My personal guess is that you cannot. I would think that if any circuit was totally shielded in its own little Faraday box it would be that one. But I was asking the question so that anyone who actually knew the answer might respond.